Too soon for Jackson funeral, father says

By IBT Staff Reporter On 06/29/09 AT 4:33 PM

Michael Jackson's father said on Monday it was too soon to set a funeral date for the pop star, saying the family was waiting to hear details of a second, private autopsy on the self-styled King of Pop.

We don't have a time frame for that (the funeral) because I want to see how this autopsy is coming out, Joe Jackson told reporters after a family meeting at the Jackson family's home in suburban Los Angles.

Standing beside Joe Jackson outside the house -- the site of a makeshift memorial of flowers and balloons -- civil rights leader Al Sharpton said the family did not want to rush into plans to commemorate Jackson's life and musical legacy.

Sharpton said the family was being careful and deliberate on how they plan the celebration of his life.

Two inconclusive autopsies have been carried out on Jackson -- one by the Los Angeles County Coroner's office and one by a private pathologist. Toxicology tests are expected to take several weeks.

Jackson, 50, died suddenly of cardiac arrest at his rented Los Angeles home on Thursday, just a few weeks before a planned string of 50 comeback concerts in London.

The first two are Jackson's children from his ex-wife Debbie Rowe and the third from an unidentified surrogate mother. In court papers, Joe and Katherine Jackson said the children had no relationship with their biological mother.

It is unclear whether Rowe may also seek custody.

BRITISH TABLOID REPORT INACCURATE

The Los Angeles coroner's office on Monday dismissed as inaccurate a British newspaper report that said Michael Jackson was emaciated and almost bald when he died.

Assistant chief coroner Ed Winter said details reported in the British Sun tabloid about Jackson's condition did not come from either the private or the county autopsy.

I don't know where that information came from, or who that information came from. It is not accurate. Some of it is totally false, Winters told reporters.

Claiming it had seen a leaked autopsy report, The Sun said Jackson was wearing a wig when he died to cover his peach fuzz hair, weighed only about 112 pounds (51 kg), that his hips, thighs and shoulders were riddled with needle wounds, and his stomach was empty apart from partially dissolved pills.

Jackson admitted in 1993 that he had an addiction to painkillers, but he had recently passed a lengthy medical exam ahead of the London concerts.

Sharpton said on Monday the family was moved by the global outpouring of love for Jackson and there were a number of ideas being floated to preserve a legacy that changed the shape of music videos and influenced a new generation of R&B singers.

These included a possible museum in the Jackson family hometown of Gary, Indiana, and other celebrations.